Talk:The Buggles

Buggles?

According to the article: "Horn said he chose "The Buggles" for the band's name because, "It was the most disgusting name I could think of at that time."" But what's so disgusting about the word "buggle"? Is this some slang term that was popular at the time? Dismas 22:12, 21 July 2005 (UTC)

I am suppose it comes from bugger, a British slang term with many meanings, one of which is a expletive/perjorative to convey crude anal sex.

Where is the source that "Video Killed The Radio Star" reached #1 on the charts? The song only peaked at #40 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart. The song was the first video played on MTV, of course, but that's quite different than reaching #1 on the charts. The song was #1 in the UK charts, not the USA.

There is no definite article in the official name for the Buggles, as confirmed by record labels and Joel Whitburn's chart books. The definite article is used before their name in speech and in running text, but not in headings and in lists of names. The same is true for:

Carpenters Go-Gos

I can't figure out how to remove the definite article from the titles of the entries of these acts.

For the record, the following non-definite-article acts are listed correctly in Wikipedia:

Pet Shop Boys Buzzcocks Spice Girls Village People Sex Pistols Doves Associates Bee Gees

A nerdy observation, but keeping in the spirit of Wikipedia.

Actually, the UK records generally do credit "The Buggles" on the label (though the front sleeves say "Buggles"). I think the most we can say is that the use of the definite article was inconsistent. --80.3.40.2 14:22, 29 January 2007 (UTC)

How do you pronounce Buggle? Is it like Bugle, or like bug? ABart26 07:27, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

To rhyme with snuggle

Cheers. ABart26 16:26, 28 October 2006 (UTC)

OK, so if they continually omitted the definate article from their name, why on Earth would anybody include it? Surely that's an indicator that their actual name is Buggles and not The Buggles..? --Mal 07:33, 16 May 2007 (UTC)

IMO At the time of their becoming famous, they were marketed as Buggles and that's what I got to know them as - and I'll not be calling them The Buggles just because they thought that was their name. If Buggles was wrong, why didn't they get it corrected ?

OK, so this is a bit late but....

I realise this is a tad late in the conversation but here is my 2c on this anyway. As somebody who was actually around in 1979 (I was 19), I never heard them referred to as just "Buggles". They were always referred to as "The Buggles". I happen to have an original copy of the "Video Killed The Radio Star" single here and both sides give the group's name as "The Buggles" with production also credited to "The Buggles".[1][2] "The" was often omitted from the names of groups on record covers because it was not good marketing to include it. "The Buggles" (or "The Bangles" etc) had to be in smaller writing than "Buggles" on the record label and cover use of "The" put the group's records near the end of the racks in the record stores under "T", rather than at the beginning under "B". Lack of "The" on the record doesn't necessarily mean that the official name also lacks "The". If it did, would this group be a different group to this one?

I also note that on Geoff Downes' website, both on the bio page (see para 8) and in the 31 July 2008 blog entry, the group is referred to as "The Buggles", not "the Buggles". --AussieLegend (talk) 17:28, 26 November 2008 (UTC)

Follow-up - I contacted Geoff Downes management via an email address I found on his website and received the following reply:

“ We, (me & Trevor) always referred to ourselves as "The Buggles", after originating the name as a spoof on "The Beatles". But the record label, Island (who incidentally hated the name!) dropped the "The", in quite a few promotional instances, as some of the depts thought it the lesser of two evils & more preferable without it....hence, the 2 options. However, when possible, we always tried to use it, as that was what it was all about to us, and we got the joke!

Best regards & hope all is well,

Geoff

”

That confirms what is on the website, ie that the name of the group is "The Buggles", not just "Buggles" --AussieLegend (talk) 00:48, 1 December 2008 (UTC)

Inconsistencies

It can hardly be said that Buggles were formed as a new wave band in 1977. Punk began in 1976 and gained full momentum in 1977. 'New wave' was supposed to have been a post-punk genre, and in any case Buggles were pure, unadulterated pop. Nothing more, nothing less. Bruce Woolley actually wrote the majority of 'Video...' and receives 50% of the royalties, even though there are 3 people credited. On a radio interview for BBC Radio 2, 19/02/2008, he said that he wrote the tune and most of the words, and that it had been 'beautifully arranged by Geoff Downes'. Presumably Trevor Horn was the production input. The vocal was achieved by putting the microphone through a Vox AC30 and capturing the resulting tone. There was some panic when the song was rerecorded for the master tape as they couldn't quite capture the exact result as on the demo. apparently.79.73.219.160 (talk) 20:22, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

I'd like to know how Hans Zimmer got on there. Sposato (talk) 04:38, 1 March 2009 (UTC)

The Buggles had a synthetic, modern sound, so the new wave description is apt, although old-fashioned now. New wave, I now believe, refers to the new talent that emerged in the music industry after 1978. Eligius (talk) 00:34, 13 September 2010 (UTC)

External link

My site is pretty much done, but it's still a work in progress.Sposato (talk) 02:04, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

What is the song about

The buggles started in 2000 for the case of tv's and videos taking over radio

Modified some dates

I modified some details about release dates (Lenny and Beatnik are from 1982), and I added Beatnik to a sum-up of single in one sentence. And Lenny did chart, in the Netherlands. Those are things that are factually 100% right so I thought it OK to modify the text without consulting anyone, hope you don't mind. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Melambdalguq (talk • contribs) 23:22, 6 November 2008 (UTC)

Was Bruce Woolley ever a member?

There are conflicting information about Bruce Woolley and his relation to The Buggles. This article currently currently says that Woolley initially was a member and that he left shortly before the release of "Video Killed the Radio Star", while the article about Woolley states "Woolley was never a member of The Buggles. He was, in his own words, merely "on the design team"." Unfortunately, neither is backed by a reliable source (actually not sourced at all). So what to believe? I would like to get this point this point straightened out so we can streamline the two articles. Can anyone help with a reliable source? – IbLeo^(talk) 08:40, 12 February 2010 (UTC)

Woolley never performed with The Buggles. As far as I'm aware, his involvement was limited to co-writing a couple of songs, like "Video Killed the Radio Star".[3] --AussieLegend (talk) 09:11, 12 February 2010 (UTC)

Yeah, he apparently wrote the music to "Video Killed..." (and own 50% of the rights to that song) and co-wrote a number of other Buggles songs. He also plays on both studio albums. But I am also beginning to think that he was never a real member of the band, but I would like to back it up with a reliable source (I have been unable to locate one myself, hence this request). So unless another editor comes along and tells me otherwise in the next couple of days, I will go ahead and modify the article in that direction. – IbLeo^(talk) 14:15, 21 February 2010 (UTC)

 Done. I have updated the lead section and the navigation box accordingly.

Trevor Horn's website describes Woolley as being a member of the original line-up of the band. Is that good enough? I'll make the change. Bondegezou (talk) 14:00, 9 September 2010 (UTC)

You were already bold once, and since I reverted you, per WP:CONS you should seek a compromise before reinstating your edit. You never gave me a chance to reply; in consequence I have re-reverted you. Now, regarding your source, I see what you mean. However, as it is a self-published source which should not be used in such a context ,I am not convinced about it. Horn is probably willing to twist history a tiny bit to his advantage to attract attention to this new tour. Please consider the following facts: (a) The Bruce Woolley article currently states "Woolley was never a member of The Buggles. He was, in his own words, merely "on the design team"." Sure, it's also an unsourced statement but I am concerned about consistency between the articles. (b) Woolley was clearly not a member of The Buggles by the time when "Video Killed the Radio Star" was released; he is not pictured on the cover, and he even released his own version of the song with the Camera Club beforehand. (c) Allmusic [4], for what it's worth, doesn't mention Woolley. – IbLeo^(talk) 19:37, 9 September 2010 (UTC)

I don't know that you should be reverting someone "in consequence". You take issue with the Trevor Horn statement as "self-published", yet cite your position with Woolley's Wikipedia entry, which is not permissable. I don't see how the fact that he was not with the band by the time "Radio Star" was released, supports that he was "never a member". Unless I've missed something, being mentioned at Allmusic is not a requirement. 2tuntony (talk) 00:02, 20 September 2010 (UTC)

Reviewing this further, I fail to see how Trevor Horn's site is "self-published". It would be "self-published" if it was on Bruce Woolley's site. Your statement that "Horn is probably willing to twist history to gain attraction to this new tour", is both speculation (what he "is probably willing" to do), and inaccurate ("new tour"). It is specifically stated that there will be no tour, nor commercial release of the one-off performance, which is a benefit for neurological disability.2tuntony (talk) 00:12, 20 September 2010 (UTC)

You are of course right when you state that there was a degree of speculation in my previous entry. I must also admit that I somehow hastily read the entry on Trevor Horn's website and missed the part about no tour planned, etc. Mea culpa. So I have to admit that for the first time we have a reliable source stating that Bruce Woolley was a member. I am willing to accept that, and I think we should reflect it better in the article than just sticking his name into the infobox; at least we should add a link to the source. I would also propose to re-insert him back into the navbox. However, I am still concerned about the consistency, as the article about Bruce Woolley actually states that he was never a member (see my previous entry above). WDYT? In best cooperation. – IbLeo^(talk) 21:21, 23 September 2010 (UTC)

Your comment is most appreciated. I agree that anything we can back up with WP:RS concerning Woolley's very brief tenure with the band should be included. As far as the inconsistencies between the articles goes, I think that the Woolley article needs a lot of work. However, it is my understanding (and I could be off base here), that Wikipedia articles are always to be treated as separate entities. In other words, I think that the Woolley article needs work, just because it needs work, rather than anything that is said, or unsaid in this article. YMMV, of course. 2tuntony (talk) 03:59, 27 September 2010 (UTC)

I agree with you that Bruce Woolley's article is not in the best of shapes, and in need of cleanup and RS's. However, I am not aware of any policy or guideline saying that articles should be considered as entirely separate entities and that we should not worry about consistency. This does not mean that such a thing does not exist, although I would find it pretty weird. But let's stick to the RS we have and consider BW as a member. I have reinserted him into the navbox for a start. – IbLeo^(talk) 19:41, 30 September 2010 (UTC)

Bruce Woolley was never an official member - he just helped out. Sort of like Spike Edney with Queen, who played keyboards on albums and live - a "fifth Beatle", if you will. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Arran64 (talk • contribs) 10:14, 27 March 2012 (UTC)

The continued interest in "Video Killed the Radio Star" has allowed for some latter-day clarity on the issue. Although after a concert performance of the song in 2004, Horn introduced Woolley as an "early Buggle"[5] (performer introductions start at 4:08), in a 2018 interview with The Guardian Horn stated that The Buggles formed after Woolley parted ways with Horn and Downes.[6] Per the interview, the three came together as the touring band for the singer Tina Charles, Horn's then-girlfriend. The trio wrote some songs together, but, Horn says, "When Bruce got a solo deal and left, Geoff and I became Buggles." --GentlemanGhost (séance) 12:10, 21 December 2018 (UTC)

Where is Hans Zimmer?

The Wikipedia and IMDb pages for Hans Zimmer say he was a member of The Buggles, but this page doesn't mention him at all. I don't know the facts but there certainly shouldn't be that inconsistency in Wikipedia, either this page or his page is wrong. 146.232.75.208 (talk) 23:04, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

The article on Hans Zimmer says simply "He worked with The Buggles (...)" and continues with a sourced statement that he appeared briefly in the music video for "Video Killed the Radio Star". I have copies of both their studio albums and—unlike Bruce Woolley—he does not play on any of them. So I don't think there is ground for stating membership, and I don't think there is any inconsistency between the two articles. – IbLeo^(talk) 11:36, 28 October 2010 (UTC)

Merge - Buggles Discography

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section. A summary of the conclusions reached follows.

No consensus to merge

---

Merge Proposal : Merge The Buggles discography into The Buggles

I don't know why the discography was split out from this article into a separate article. The discography is rather short as it consists of two albums and the singles released from them. The Buggles article is not so large as to justify a split, and the discography article itself is substantially the same content but with better referencing (that's a good thing). What isn't a good thing is sending our readers to a separate article when the information could be presented in the article itself, and was so until it was split off. -- Whpq (talk) 11:21, 23 July 2013 (UTC)

Not doing a vote here, but actually the Discog is a little more than just two albums and nine singles. Theres also 2 music videos listed there. Just so you are aware. EditorEat ma talk page up, scotty!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 13:03, 23 July 2013 (UTC)

Theres also this source that said they also did a remix of the Jags "Back of my Hand". I mean, I know its Discogs, but we could cite the Vinyl itself. EditorEat ma talk page up, scotty!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 13:13, 23 July 2013 (UTC)

Yes I am aware. The point is that the entire discography as a whole is so small that it easily fits into the main article, so there is no justification for a separate discography article. -- Whpq (talk) 13:14, 23 July 2013 (UTC)

Well, I just wanted to find stuff by this group so you would know how much there would be in the discography. Could we count this as a promotional EP? EditorEat ma talk page up, scotty!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 13:19, 23 July 2013 (UTC)

I don't think, since I've add some more credits, that its so short it doesn't deserve its own article, so I'm going with an Oppose vote. EditorEat ma talk page up, scotty!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 01:47, 24 July 2013 (UTC)

Oppose merger The discography has 16 items; 10 is the minimum threshold for an article to be a WP:FLC candidate (which it incidentally is). If it is good enough to be a featured list, it is good enough to be its own article. Besides, tacking it on at the end of The Buggles would just make this article too long.—indopug (talk) 06:05, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

• Oppose. There's enough to warrant a separate article for their discography. — Status (talk · contribs) 03:27, 14 August 2013 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

Years active

Do you think we should change the disbanding year from 1981 to 1982? The Buggles did do a live performance on a Dutch TV show in 1982, as claimed Here, so do you think we should count that as part of the band's original activity? EditorEat ma talk page up, scotty! 19:43, 29 July 2013 (UTC)

Photos

The photos of Downes and Horn smack in the middle of the text are simply hideous. There has to be a better way of placing them. Joefromrandb (talk) 06:35, 2 September 2013 (UTC)

The side by side double image doesn't work well int he Legacy section. I've reverted back to the earlier image placement for those two images. -- Whpq (talk) 14:33, 2 September 2013 (UTC)

Much better! Joefromrandb (talk) 14:42, 2 September 2013 (UTC)

Magazine interview

Hello. I found on Ebay that there was an interview by magazine Record Mirror with the Buggles, but I can't access or order it. If anybody can, please do so, and leave me the full text either on this talk page or my user talk page. Thank you. Here are the links to order: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/RECORD-MIRROR-3-11-79-THE-BUGGLES-DR-HOOK-THE-KNACK-ADAM-THE-ANTS-/370907715607?pt=UK_Magazines&hash=item565bd29817

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/RECORD-MIRROR-1979-NOV-3-BUGGLES-SPECIALS-MADNESS-/140997113694?pt=UK_Music_Music_Memorabilia_LE&hash=item20d415375e

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/RECORD-MIRROR-1979-NOV-3-KNACK-BUGGLES-FLEETWOOD-MAC-SPECIALS-MADNESS-SELECTER-/130928426322?pt=UK_Magazines&hash=item1e7bf13d52

和DITOREtails 02:33, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

Another Buggles article in Beat Instrumental I found a ebay but can't access. Please order it, and again, give me the full text so we can use it in the Buggles articles on Wikipedia: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BEAT-INSTRUMENTAL-162-5-1980-Scott-Gorham-Thin-Lizzy-Genesis-Buggles-Spyro-Gyra-/151095032631?pt=UK_Magazines&hash=item232df73b37

http://www.beatchapter.com/beat-instrumental-162-51980-scott-gorham-thin-lizzy-genesis-buggles-spyro-gyra-10072-p.asp

和DITOREtails 02:37, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

Another magazine article I found on ebay but can't access.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/LOOK-IN-MAGAZINE-Junior-TV-Times-No-12-March-1980-Mork-Mindy-The-Buggles-/261071217326?pt=UK_Magazines&hash=item3cc90ea2ae 和DITOREtails 02:39, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

Another one: http://www.ebay.com/itm/RECORD-MIRROR-1980-OCT-18-MADNESS-GILLAN-TOURISTS-THIN-LIZZY-BUGGLES-BLONDIE-/360762920166?pt=UK_Magazines&hash=item53ff254ce6 和DITOREtails 02:40, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

Another one: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/RECORD-MIRROR-6-3-82-SOFT-CELL-BOW-WOW-WOW-THEATRE-OF-HATE-ALEXEI-SAYLE-/370933907805?pt=UK_Magazines&hash=item565d62415d

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